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Tuesday, May 19, 2015

How to Get to the Next Level in Health Information Management

So, are you ready for your next level role within Health Information Management (HIM)?

What is your next level? As noted on the AHIMA Engaged site, the HIM field is open to professionals at different education and credential levels. What can you do to prepare for a career in the HIM world? It is never too early to start gaining experience working with medical records and electronic health records in any capacity. What does this mean? As a student, you are in high demand for part time positions with duties ranging from filing to scanning and data entry. These simple tasks can get you into a clinical setting in preparation for possible internships and later full time jobs. The students that are working full time in a clinical setting can go the extra mile by getting involved in HIM projects, pitching best practices or joining a committee at work that would improve IT skills.

Gaining experience in any capacity distinguishes you from your peers. It shows your current employer that you are invested in the process and it tells prospective employers you are forward thinking and will be a great asset to their team. Try some of the following strategies to help you stand out:

Identify Areas for Improvement: Look around your department and determine what processes you can improve.

The fun really begins when you find an opening for a position of interest! Get prepared by researching the company and ensure that your resume is updated. Create a unique cover letter for the position. WGU Career & Professional Development has resources to help you get started. Be comfortable with the wording; it should sound like your own words and not a template. Your resume should state your accomplishments and you should be prepared to address and elaborate on these accomplishments in an interview. Make sure to bring your manuals and other self-created materials to your interview as you will need to use them to elaborate. After all, this should be the best sales pitch for the job you want!

Last but not least, answer questions honestly and demonstrate how your skills can benefit the company you want to work for. Don’t just dress the part; remember you are there to have a conversation with your prospective employer. Good luck students!

About the Author

Sandra Goddard is an Area Supervisor at MRO Corp and a Health Informatics graduate of WGU. In her previous position with a behavioral health organization, there were limited opportunities for growth so she decided to gain experience by participating on various committees related to IT projects, coding implementation and training. She utilized her IT skills and additional knowledge gained through her coursework to simplify processes and train her colleagues. After ten years with the behavioral health organization and graduation on the horizon, Sandra began applying for management positions. She produced training manuals to demonstrate how her experience would be an asset for new staff training in both HIPAA and ROI procedures. Her hard work and job search preparation paid off as she was offered the Area Supervisor position for MRO Corp. MRO Corp is a vendor and the position allows for a multitude of EMR experience and networking. As an Area Supervisor, she is constantly learning best practices at different sites. As the saying goes “Hard work brings great rewards” and this is true in the HIM field.